5 Times Maggie Learned
by Damonficgirl
Summary: Complete title on story page to avoid spoiling anyone. Set after season 4 so spoilers up to and including "Shoot the Moon." Maggie centric with some Ben/Maggie moments.


**5 Times When Maggie Learned To Love Her Spikes**

**_NB: 5 One-shots on a theme set after the Season 4 final, assume there will be spoilers for Season 4. These stand alone from my other story but I will get back to that universe I hope. _**

1

Hal had taken the news that his Dad was missing badly. Being Hal he didn't yell, he didn't scream, he didn't talk, he just declared he was going out on patrol and stormed off, hot-headed gun in hand.

"Hal, wait," Dan begged, knowing the young Mason was in no condition to being head to head with a skitter.

Hal ignored Weaver. "Somebody go after that solider," Dan instructed.

"I will," Ben volunteered.

"I'm sorry Ben but I don't think you're the right person for this job."

"Let me," Maggie volunteered.

"And you think that's a better option?" Dan asked dryly.

"He won't see me," Maggie promised.

Tracking Hal was harder for Maggie than it would have been for Ben, she was still learning to filter the sounds that overwhelmed her ears, still learning to control her landings when she leapt from rooftop to rooftop. If Hal hadn't been distracted he would have detected her presence earlier, but he was distracted. He was swimming in fear, hope and grief. He wanted to believe his father was still coming home. He wanted his grief for his sister to be simpler and not confused by…. Relief. And self-hatred for feeling relieved that the threat she posed to all of them was gone.

It was easier when he knew who the enemy was.

That's why he needed to hunt skitters, to feel a sense of purpose.

When he found a patrol of them he felt focused, useful, powerful. He took the first two out quickly. He was practiced and precise. But there were more close behind and soon he was fighting for his life. Shoot, dodge, roll towards cover, shoot. He was sure he'd faced this many before alone but a thread of panic began to creep up within him. He pushed it aside and maintained his focus on the three skitters spread out in front of him.

He didn't see the swarm behind him. Didn't even notice them closing in, until she landed beside him, both guns blazing, skitters flying everywhere.

"Mind if I give you a hand?" Maggie smiled. She loved being this fast. She was amazed Ben didn't show off more, but then he'd never had her blood lust, this was her thing, fighting, and she was better at it than ever.

Hal shrugged, "Well if you're in the neighborhood," he returned, ignoring the fact she'd clearly been following him, they could argue about that later.

2

Most of the children from Lexi's refugee had been massacred in the first Eshpeni attack after Lexi abandoned them, and fewer still had survived the fog, but one girl with dirty blonde hair survived. Maggie was never really into kids, didn't think she wanted her own, but she'd liked Jimmy and this girl reminded her of herself, could have been a kid sister.

So when Maggie heard a high pitched voice scream and the rustle of a skitter attack she knew she had to find the source.

But there were so many sounds, so many voices. She could hear Anne crying in a building nearby though she never let them see her cry they knew she did. She could hear Pope and Sarah kissing. Eew. The girl. Where was the girl? She had to find her. There wasn't much time.

She would have asked Ben for help but he was out on patrol and there was no time.

Maggie concentrated, her spikes glowed and she let her newly developed instincts kick in. She pumped her legs, running, jumping, crawling her way up and over buildings and dropping down suddenly into a nearby side street where the little girl had been looking through rubble for playthings.

Maggie blasted the skitter quickly and then swept the girl up in her arms.

"It's okay, I've got you," Maggie reassured her. "You're safe now."

3

"You're back. How are you?" Maggie asked gently, but awkwardly, she wasn't sure what she was to Ben anymore, but she could feel his pain radiating off him and she owed him something.

"You know," Ben stated simply.

"I'm sorry, about Lexi, and your Dad, but if anyone can make it home it's Tom."

Ben nodded, "Everyone keeps saying that, and I want to believe it, but we've lost so many people, it doesn't seem fair for me to expect him to come home."

"None of this is fair Ben. You're allowed to have hope."

"Let's train," Ben suggested, sidestepping the conversation. He needed to push away the grief. He needed to feel something good.

"Sure, what did you have in mind?"

"How about we see if you can keep up with me?" Ben challenged, and he took off at top speed, racing to the end of the street, vaulting off a dumpster and onto a roof, running across the roof and bounding onto another. Maggie followed, her blonde hair streaming out behind her, feeling her body flying, every muscle working perfectly. She felt alive. Her spikes glowed and Bens glowed in unison and they shared the feeling of exhilaration, neither sure where the feeling had begun, but both happy to feel relief from the grief and guilt and worry that had been weighing on them.

4

"So what do you think?" Ben asked, a broad grin plastered across his face. Ben's smile was never half-hearted; it was always intense and full, unbridled. Before the spikes Maggie had wondered if somehow, despite growing up in a post-apocalyptic invasion world, Ben was sort of naiveté, because really what was there to be so darn happy about? But now she understood the smile, the feeling behind it, the intensity that hid behind Ben's youthful face.

They were perched on a skyscraper at the western edge of the city, with a view of a river that snaked through nearby farming land, not that there were any farms left now. From this height in the twilight, it almost looked peaceful. You could almost ignore the burnt out and abandoned cars, the overgrown and bomb-blasted grasslands. As the sun sunk into the horizon orange and pink tones streaked the sky.

"Jesus Mason, what kind of girl do you think I am? I bed you bring all the girls here," Maggie teased.

"You're the third this week," Ben returned grinning. "Look I know you're not into all that mushy stuff but with everything going on, I think its important to remember what we're fighting for."

"And what's that? Because between you and me I'm just fighting to survive and sometimes I'm not sure why."

"It's not just about survival. It's about this – place – America – Earth. It's our home."

Maggie nodded slightly. They weren't holding hands or anything. Ben didn't try to make a move, didn't try to press her for more than she was ready to give, he just let her take it all in.

5

Ben and Maggie slowed from their run as they approached their temporary base. Ben was right, Maggie had noticed if you showed off too much the non-spike humans got weirded out by the spike superpowers. Both were smiling, ear to ear, they weren't touching but it felt like tiny bolts of electricity were shooting back and forth between them. She felt his presence beside her with every fiber of her being, and Ben felt hers.

"I'm so glad some of us still find time to have fun," Hal snickered, clearly meaning the opposite. "It's not like our Dad's lost in space or anything or our sister just died, no need to break up the party guys."

Ben's face fell. "It's not like that. I'm hurting too."

"I can see that," Hal returned, shoulder barging Ben as he walked past.

Even though Ben was stronger he let his brother shove him aside, and he didn't swing around to retaliate. He didn't grab his arm, he didn't shout back, he didn't say, "What would you know about our sister, at least I loved her! You couldn't stand her!"

Ben didn't do any of those things, because he wasn't that guy. He just stood there watching his brother walk away, anguish written all over his face, hurt and lonely.

"Hey, he doesn't mean what he's saying," Maggie offered gently, stepping into Ben's personal space.

"Yeah he did. He's never going to see me as anything other than his spoilt brat kid brother. Just because before the invasion Dad and I had more in common, as if he and Dad haven't spent every moment since fighting side by side? Matt and I can never compare to Hal. Hal's a _man_. Hal can be trusted with an army. He still thinks I'm some weak selfish brat. And maybe he's right about one thing, I am selfish, because I'm sick of worrying about his feelings, he certainly doesn't care about mine."

"Hey easy," Maggie soothed, and cupped Ben's flushed cheeks with her palms. "It's going to be okay Ben. Your Dad was so proud of you. He loves all of you. Hal's just angry. And you're not selfish, you risked your life to save me because he asked."

She let go of his face and knitted her hands together with his even though she felt ridiculous for doing it. She wasn't the girly girl, she didn't do mushy romantic crap, but Ben had been so good to her, it was the least she could do.

"But I didn't do it for him Maggie. I did it for you," Ben confessed.

"Still not selfish," Maggie smiled. "Even if you had feelings for me it took guts to do that."

"If?" Ben quipped, his eyebrow arching.

"Okay, I get it, you had feelings for me before the spikes, I'm sorry Ben I feel stupid for not knowing before. I know I was angry with you for making me feel the way I do but it's not your fault. It's not my fault, it just is. Hal's going to have to get used to this, Things change. I've changed."

"Are you saying you're okay with that now?" Ben asked hopefully. He was leaning in close, she still hadn't let go of his hands and his heart was pounding in anticipation.

"I'm saying I think I could be. I got used to the spikes didn't I?" Maggie smiled.

"Good," Ben smiled. "Because I could get used to this too," he warned, and when he closed the distance between them and kissed her Maggie didn't fight the flood of feeling pouring through them. Their spikes glowed and she couldn't tell where her feelings ended and his began but she knew they were finally on the same page.


End file.
